Loss of an "irreplacable ecosystem" at Wolf Lake would threaten
Canada's biodiversity, says a new
report.

"We don't have a very good understanding of the biodiversity that
is there," University of
Guelph scientist Madhur Anand, and lead author, said on CBC Radio. "We won't know what we've lost until it's gone."

Wolf Lake sits
on a "climatically sensitive area" between the Great Lakes Forest and
the Boreal Forest. It's a
"real treasure of scientific knowledge."

Wolf Lake has been the focus of controversial mining in
the old-growth red pine forest that the province committed to
protecting in a park, but has failed to act.

The report was published in the scientific journal Biodiversity
and Conservation.
This is the second scientific report supporting Wolf's preservation.

Bass nest along shorelines in three to five feet of water.
They can be identified by circular patches of gravel where the fish have
cleaned the bottom to lay eggs.

Any bass
caught along the shoreline, at this point, is a potential male
protecting young in the nest. They will be aggressive towards
anything that approaches.

— Mike Drenth

JUNE 14, 2013Scientists find 210 species at Wolf Lake

A team of scientists identified 210 species at
Wolf Lake, including two bird species at risk. The Wolf Lake
old-growth red pine forest, the largest survivor in the world, is
threatened by mining, a focus of public opposition.

“We strongly urge that no further industrial
disturbance be permitted to this ecosystem," said old-growth expert
Peter Quinby.

“Any further industrial disturbance risks degrading the scientific
value of this irreplaceable ecosystem before we have uncovered its
storehouse of ecological information.”

During the study conducted last year, scientists found a high
diversity of lichens and extraordinary red pine regeneration, turning
conventional wisdom on its head.

Among the species found were 47 lichens, 84 plants, 6 aquatic
invertebrates, 10 reptiles and amphibians, 60 breeding birds, and
at-risk
Canada warbler and common nighthawk.

Harold Keevil produced a captivating time-lapse video of wildlife on a
pond off Sharp Rock Inlet. He used a remote camera, placed on a
wildlife trail, that was triggered by a motion detector during the day
and a heat sensor at night.